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20# co2 tank
so i found a guy who is selling an empty 20# co2 tank for $40, which at first sounds like a great deal, but almost too good of a deal. he said he was gonna use it for his commercial beer kegerator, but it was too big.
my concern is, he was a little vague on where he got it (and he wasn't the most honest looking guy to begin with).
i'm wondering if he maybe got it from somewhere he shouldn't have and then was unable to fill it? if that is the case, am i going to be able to fill it? it has a bunch of serial numbers stamped on it, but wasn't sure what those meant.
i have a 5# tank i keep in my kegerator that i swap out at the local airgas shop, but would love to have a reserve tank for blowing out lines, immersion chillers, and emergency back up. considering i owned the original tank i swapped out, i assume they will swap out any tank?
i just don't want to get stuck with a tank i can't use. input?
osky777 wrote:
it has a bunch of serial numbers stamped on it, but wasn't sure what those meant.
considering i owned the original tank i swapped out, i assume they will swap out any tank?
i just don't want to get stuck with a tank i can't use. input?
Those numbers are the certification, and a tank needs to be pressure tested every so often (10 years?) So this guy may have sold an out of date tank. If so it just needs to be water pressure tested (for a fee- not sure how much $$) then can be entered into your tank exchange program. I bought mine off of ebay, if you are worried about its origin you could always say you got it there.
thanks thirsty.
yeah i guess i should just bring it to the store and see what they say. i'm not too worried about what the actual origin of the tank may be, i just don't want to get screwed if they tell me the tank is useless... been burned on craigslist before...
If you bring it to a place that does swaps, it won't matter. They give you a full one, then destroy the other.
At least that's what happens at the place I go to.
brewchez wrote:
If you bring it to a place that does swaps, it won't matter. They give you a full one, then destroy the other.
At least that's what happens at the place I go to.
why do they destroy the tanks that people turn in? doesn't seem like good business??
at the airgas shop i use i was told they take the empty tanks for refilling at a later date, and just give you a full one that they have on hand.
i know this, because i asked about keeping my shiny new tank, but the guy said they don't refill on the spot at that location. (i was kind of bummed, but it's whats inside that i really need)
he also said that eventually i would have to get my tank recertified if i just kept refilling it, but if i swapped out every time i wouldn't have to worry about it because they handle all of the certifications when filling.
Dude! They only destroy the ones that are out of spec either by date or pressure test.
The place where I do swaps assumes the responsibilty of out of spec tanks. Because they don't check them when you drop it off. They spec it when they go to refill it later on. At that point its back in their inventory.
This is all yet another good reason to not buy a tank. Just pay the "lease" fee for one at a swapping place. Essentially its buying a tank, but you are really just buying the right to borrow one, and paying for the OC2 each time you go in for a fill....er swap.
ahh. that makes a little more sense than destroying a tank every time. i was about to ask where they were located so i could go setup shop as a co2 supplier next door.
guess i won't pass up this deal... hope it works out!
brewchez wrote:
The place where I do swaps assumes the responsibilty of out of spec tanks. Because they don't check them when you drop it off. They spec it when they go to refill it later on. At that point its back in their inventory.
.
I didnt want to suggest dropping off a non-cert tank at first, but this is exactly what I did with my 20#. I just threw the tank up on the dock where I normally drop off, then asked for an exchange. Walked away with a new certified filled tank, and now I fill (er swap) at a different place. A little sneaky, but for what they charge, it is justified. And I own my tank not lease.
Damn with all this "tank talk" my 20 and my 5 will probably run out at the exact same time, and soon.
thirsty wrote:
Damn with all this "tank talk" my 20 and my 5 will probably run out at the exact same time, and soon.
Its always at the wrong time too.
I have to 5#ers. Just had one go dry, and I promised a homebrewing friend I would go over and flush out his secondary carboy with CO2 for a true second fermentation on a Braggot we planned out. Luckily I still had the second tank and it was full. Must of filled it like 2 years ago because I have only been back in the kegging game for a few months now.
thirsty wrote:
I didnt want to suggest dropping off a non-cert tank at first, but this is exactly what I did with my 20#. I just threw the tank up on the dock where I normally drop off, then asked for an exchange. Walked away with a new certified filled tank, and now I fill (er swap) at a different place. A little sneaky, but for what they charge, it is justified. And I own my tank not lease.
i don't think it's too sneaky. if the gas company is assuming the liability of swapping out and certifying tanks when they fill, it is on them to decide if they want to swap a particular tank . i mean i really have no way of determining if the tank is good or not, i can only assume that it is.
as for runnning out right when you need it, murphy's law is always going to play a factor in that!
maybe i should look for a spare, spare tank...
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